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The Miami HEAT take on the Houston Rockets tonight on the second night of a back-to-back. The HEAT, 5-2, are coming off a defeat in Memphis to the Grizzlies. The Rockets are 3-3 after their win over the Detroit Pistons on Saturday. Here's a quick preview of tonight's action:

1. Is the new Houston James Harden the same as the old Oklahoma City James Harden, just with a higher usage rate?

Couper Moorhead: That about sums it up. Harden has undoubtedly improved in a number of areas – we don’t have large enough sample sizes to really prove this yet – but on average he used about 20 percent of his possessions with the Thunder and that number has jumped to 30 percent with the Rockets, which is everything you expect from a guy going from being a sixth man to the focal point of a team’s offense. He’s gelled reasonably well with Jeremy Lin considering both are primarily pick-and-roll players, but almost a fifth of Harden’s total offense has come in transition so far. He’s one of the most selective and thus efficient shooters in the league, so he’ll find success in the half-court, but the HEAT can’t afford to lose him in the open court.

Also, yada yada yada he didn’t play well in the Finals. Big whoop. It doesn’t matter one bit.

Danny Martinez: I think we’re going to see a little more playmaking out of Harden, but that’s just a hunch on my part. His assist percentage (estimate of percentage of teammate field goals assisted on) is at a career high 23.1 percent, but it’s early. In OKC, Harden had to share ball-handling responsibilities, but now on the Rockets, I suspect Harden will almost always be the primary option and ball handler. As such, he’ll be in position to set teammates up more frequently.

Scoring-wise Harden will still be brutally efficient as long as he doesn’t alter his shot selection too much. In that sense, we’ll see the same old Harden.

2. Odd as it might be to say, could Omer Asik be the toughest big-man test the HEAT have faced?

Couper: In a sense, yes. Asik is among the best offensive rebounders in the league, just as good as players like Kenneth Faried, Kris Humphries and Zach Randolph but he’s also, by far, the best combination of rebounding, size and defense the HEAT will have faced in this young season. In fact, until Dwight Howard gets fully healthy and Kevin Garnett ups his usage to playoff minutes, there might be no better defensive big the HEAT will face this season. It might take him a few possessions to get used to Miami’s spread lineups, but Asik isn’t going to be fooled repeatedly.

Danny: On the defensive end, yes. Offensively, Asik is still very much a work in progress. He’s shown flashes of strong play, but he’s still got a ways to go to match someone like Marc Gasol who the HEAT played last night. But the defense, oh man is that defense great. Asik moves very well for his size and understands all the angles and subtle movements that make a good defender great. He uses his quickness to shut off driving lanes for smaller players and uses his height and wingspan to bother, well, everyone. Add in the fact that he’s an elite rebounder, and Asik strikes fear in any opponent.

There’s an argument to be made that with the Bulls, Asik was the best defensive player on the best defensive team of the last two seasons. The Rockets were smart to recognize this and snatch him up.

3. Any lingering issues from the Memphis loss that could pop up tonight?

Couper: The HEAT had trouble in transition, with backline help on pick-and-rolls and getting out to shooters, but those are all issues the team has had before at one time or another over the past two seasons, and each time the issues have eventually been corrected. Of course, it’s tough to correct those things on the second night of a back-to-back without a practice, but even if they crop up again tonight, that doesn’t mean there is some unfixable flaw in Miami’s defense.

Danny: There aren’t many similarities between the Rockets and Grizzlies, so I’ll focus on the HEAT side of things. The HEAT struggled with turnovers last night. The Grizzlies force more than any team in the league, but many of the HEAT’s miscues were of the “unforced” nature. The Rockets guards have quick hands and will be lurking in the HEAT passing lanes. Avoid that issue, and the HEAT will be in a much better position to win.

4. Miami gave Jeremy Lin a ton of trouble last year, but should we be reading much from that game?

Couper: It wasn’t just a media-driven narrative that Miami completely shut Lin down last year, but just as we can’t expect Harden to play as he did in the NBA Finals, expecting Lin to have much trouble with Miami’s blitzing pick-and-roll defense isn’t fair to him nor is it an expectation properly founded on much evidence. That being said, Mario Chalmers and Norris Cole essentially upped their defense to playoff levels in that game against the Knicks, and if they do so again it could mean, early on, a few backcourt turnovers for Lin and some easy run-outs for the HEAT.

Danny: Nope. But that’s just because reading much from any one game is pretty fruitless. The HEAT held Lin in check once, but that doesn’t mean they’ll do it again. Lin was a good player then and he’s a good player now. One bad game last February will not stop Lin from having success tonight. The HEAT bring the same defensive intensity that they did for the Knicks game, however, will probably stop Lin from lighting up the scoreboard.

5. Where do most of the points come from tonight?

Couper: Only because I have so much respect for Asik’s defense do I say that Chris Bosh probably won’t have a big scoring night unless that mid-range jumper is regularly open, so I’ll go with Dwyane Wade, who had a difficult shooting night last night but now gets Harden as he’s shouldering a much bigger offensive load and probably hasn’t figured out the best balance between offense and defense, yet. The Rockets are going to struggle with their interior defense when Asik is out of the game, so keep an eye on the bench lineups, too.

Danny: The Rockets are currently boasting the best halfcourt defense in the NBA according to Synergy Sports. It’s tough to gauge what we’re looking at after only six games, but it appears the Rockets are susceptible in transition and in the pick-and-roll. If those are the two best options for the HEAT offense, isn’t the best answer LeBron James and Dwyane Wade? Of course now that I say that Chris Bosh will score 35 points, the majority of which will come in the post.

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I'm looking forward to an efficient game all around by MIAMI.After that debacle of a game against Memphis,MIAMI should look to correct it's wrongs.The HEAT usually bounces back strong after a blowout,can't wait...TEAM HEAT since '88!

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I'm looking forward to an efficient game all around by MIAMI.After that debacle of a game against Memphis,MIAMI should look to correct it's wrongs.The HEAT usually bounces back strong after a blowout,can't wait...TEAM HEAT since '88!

And yes, that was a blowout no matter how you look at it. Memphis looked pretty good, and so did both LA as well as the Spurs last night. Miami is going to have to make some serious changes. Why not stick with what worked. Bosh can't be centre, at least not against teams like the Grizzlies! Can't wait for Team Heat!

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Go Heat! Gotta keep getting better. It was an awful game minutes before half time when Heat lost momemtum. But I was please the team Rebounded well and kept Gasol to a lower point. Clearly you can see Lebron is on cruise control. I do wish we had Jort in the game instead of Battier. Then bring Battier against 2nd unit of other teams where he would match up much better. My lineup:

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I'm a betting man and my forte is tennis, but now the tennis season is over I am becoming actually quite drawn to the basketball, I have noticed Miami have are this "bounce back" team where after a defeat they come back with a reaction and unleash.

Can Houston trouble them? There's been talk of your defence lacking the presence it had last season? Do Houston have a 3 point specialist? Or any star player that can take the game away from you guys if the teams not firing on all cylinders?

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So with Wade crippled and there being possible fatigue, it's best to bet inplay as you guys might find yourself behind for the first quarter or so and playing catch up, meaning the odds on you guys to win would increase from 1.48? Okay.

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To add insult to injury, I hear Dwade's finger is jammed up. It's looking more like you might be right after all....but i hope you're wrong and they win it tonight.

Oh and I forgot to add remember the Heat are NBA Champions and really no one cares if Wade has a jammed finger or if one of our star player or role players are injured, they will go all out and play the Heat like its a playoff game.

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Go Heat! Gotta keep getting better. It was an awful game minutes before half time when Heat lost momemtum. But I was please the team Rebounded well and kept Gasol to a lower point. Clearly you can see Lebron is on cruise control. I do wish we had Jort in the game instead of Battier. Then bring Battier against 2nd unit of other teams where he would match up much better. My lineup:

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Really? Tell me why. I am curious. For so far many Heat fans and cleary the organization hasn't realized that Ud is not the same player....and maybe out some loyalty feel like they need to give him minutes. I say try something new. Like everyone say's "It's early".

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Oh and I forgot to add remember the Heat are NBA Champions and really no one cares if Wade has a jammed finger or if one of our star player or role players are injured, they will go all out and play the Heat like its a playoff game.

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Photo Credit: David Dow
With the pain of missing the playoffs by the slimmest of margins ingrained in their memory, the HEAT entered the 2017-18 season seeking redemption. Take a look back at how Miami achieved that goal here.

Photo Credit: Jesse D. Garrabrant
The Miami HEAT fell to the Philadelphia 76ers 104-91 Tuesday night at Wells Fargo Center in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference First Round. Kelly Olynyk led the way for the HEAT with 18 points. Philadelphia wins the series 4-1. Click here for the full recap on HEAT.com

Photo Credit: David Dow
The Miami HEAT face the Philadelphia 76ers Tuesday night at Wells Fargo Center in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference First Round. Philadelphia leads the series 3-1. Tip-off is set for 8:00 PM. Television coverage on FOX Sports Sun begins at 7:30 PM. You can also listen to the action live on 790 The Ticket.
1: What can we learn from Philadelphia’s late push to a Game 4 victory?
Couper Moorhead: This won’t be a comforting statistic for anyone to read, but the 76ers were the first team to win a playoff game with 26 or more turnovers since 1986. For that to come up as the difference between a tied series and going on the road down 3-1 certainly can’t be easy for HEAT, but that’s the reality of the situation.
Those turnovers, and 18 Miami steals, were by and large the reason the HEAT were playing with around a 10-point lead for much of the game. They were out attacking passing lanes, getting deflections (with over 20 for the third-straight game) and contesting every Philadelphia three possible (22.6 percent from distance). It was, in so many words, the HEAT playing a very HEAT game in every way you would expect, from the physicality to the discipline on display defensively, where they cut off drives and recovered to shooters. They were in control of both the game and the score.
So how did the Sixers come back despite all of that? Six quick points from Ersan İlyasova, including a tough three, at the end of the third made it was four-point game headed into the final period. And then Philadelphia’s defense came alive, holding Miami to just 19 points in the period. And maybe that’s all there is to really learn. You can play some of your best basketball, but in a closely contested series against a talented opponent just one stretch of mistakes can cost you a handful on the scoreboard. Miami has done enough to beat a good number of teams, it just wasn’t quite enough to beat Philadelphia on Saturday.
Joe Beguiristain: We just continued to see how tough the 76ers are. Even with some great defense by Miami for most of the contest (the HEAT totaled 18 steals, including seven from Josh Richardson) and a late offensive surge by Dwyane Wade (12 points on 5-of-10 shooting in the fourth), Philadelphia never lost its composure.
Much like in Game 3, the 76ers upped their defensive pressure and came through with timely offensive rebounds to escape with the narrow victory despite committing a whopping 27 turnovers.
While J.J. Redick and Ben Simmons made some big plays late, the HEAT did a great job against Joel Embiid and made his catches tough throughout. In fact, Hassan Whiteside held Embiid to just 1-of-8 shooting and an unreal five turnovers. Bam Adebayo, meanwhile, fared just as well and limited the Cameroonian to 0-of-3 shooting and three turnovers.
It would be unreasonable to expect that once again, but it will take that kind of effort from both bigs if Miami wants to come out ahead this time around.
2: Are there any adjustments Miami can make to try and force a Game 6?
Couper: Erik Spoelstra will likely take a look at everything, from making lineup changes to changing defensive coverages to shifting offensive responsibilities. He’s not one to leave things on the table. But for everything he’ll likely look at, it’s very possible that there aren’t actually many major changes that need to be made. You go down 3-1 in a series and it’s easy to think drastic adjustments are in line, but that’s not always the case. Sometimes, and we’ve said this here before, the best adjustment is just doing what you’ve been doing and doing it better. The HEAT have already been doing things very, very well, but if being even better than that is what it takes, then so be it. As Spoelstra has said a number of times in this series, that’s the challenge.
Joe: At this point, I don’t think there is much to change or adjust for either team. Although Miami is down 3-1, this has been a highly competitive series between two teams that really get after it. Sure, Erik Spoelstra might make a few minor tweaks to his rotation based on player performance, but that’s been the case all year long. And as Coup mentioned in his first response, the HEAT have executed well enough to win most of these games, so it’s really just a matter of sustaining that high level of play for longer periods of time.
At the end of the day, Miami just needs to keep up its defensive activity to make up for the size disparity and continue to attack in the pick-and-roll to create more openings on the other end.
We’ll see how it all plays out.
3: The HEAT have led at halftime of each game this series. What can they do better to hold leads in the second half?
Couper: Something Dwyane Wade emphasized a number of times following Game 4 was that the Sixers make you pay for every single mistake you make. If you take your foot off the gas for just a couple of minutes, those minutes are going to cost you.
Now, it’s probably not fair to say the HEAT have ever really taken their foot off the gas given how consistently hard they have been playing on the defensive end, but they have certainly had some offensive droughts that have allowed the Sixers to make up some ground. That’s not always to say they stop getting good shots or don’t run their offense, but even going cold on wide open shots for a minute or two is enough to turn a game – such as at the end of the third quarter on Saturday, which snowballed into an extended Philadelphia run – in a series where both teams are in overdrive. That’s also been a bit of a trend at times for Miami this season, where they’ll have one down six-minute stretch even in games where they’re otherwise topping 26-28 in a quarter, and trends like that can carry over to the postseason even if you can minimize them.
Spoelstra has said he’s been looking for a complete game from his team at times this season. He’s been getting complete effort, but the HEAT might just need complete offense to start a comeback. And they’ll have to do it against a team that’s proved to be capable of truly elite level defense.
Joe: Although the HEAT have done a great job of building early leads, the 76ers have responded well time and time again down the stretch. Thanks to Philadelphia’s fusion of length and discipline, the team has made things quite difficult on Miami in the halfcourt more often than not. As such, it’ll behoove the HEAT to push the pace as much as possible and get some easy buckets in transition. But if the opportunity doesn’t present itself, Miami should still be able to find some success in the pick-and-roll with Dragić and Wade attacking and Whiteside and Adebayo diving to the rim with force. In addition to defending Embiid really well in Game 4, both HEAT centers threw down some ferocious alley-oops on the break, so perhaps they can continue that and also translate it to set offense on Tuesday.
Highlights:
Game 4 – 76ers at HEAT
Game 3 – 76ers at HEAT
Game Notes:
Goran Dragić leads Miami with 19.5 points per game during the postseason.
Ben Simmons leads Philadelphia in points (19.3), rebounds (10.8), assists (9.8) and steals (2.5) per contest in the playoffs.
The HEAT are 8-2 in their last 10 elimination games.
Josh Richardson (left shoulder sprain) is listed as questionable.

Photo Credit: Issac Baldizon
The Miami HEAT fell to the Philadelphia 76ers 106-102 Saturday afternoon in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference First Round. Dwyane Wade led the way for the HEAT with 25 points. Philadelphia now leads the series 3-1. Click here for the full recap on HEAT.com.